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Primož Roglič put in a stunning attack on the final stage of the Volta a Catalunya Sunday, soloing to victory and wresting the race leader’s jersey off the shoulders of Juan Ayuso.
The Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe rider started the concluding stage in Barcelona one second behind the Spaniard, who was aiming to follow up his GC success in the recent Tirreno-Adriatico.
However Roglič had other ideas, unleashing a devastating attack on the fourth ascent of the Montjuic climb and dropping Ayuso. He went solo from there and resisted all efforts to close from behind.
Ayuso was under real pressure and while his UAE Team Emirates-XRG teammates Marc Soler and Adam Yates drove hard to try to reel Roglič in, the Slovenian was too strong.
He powered in 14 seconds clear of Laurens De Plus (Ineos Grenadiers) and Lennert Van Eetvelt (Lotto), with an exhausted Ayuso trailing in at the back of a large chase group 19 seconds behind.
That plus the time bonuses left Roglič 28 seconds clear in the GC, with Enric Mas (Movistar Team) third.
“It is nice, finally after being two times second on this last stage. It was cool to finish alone, I didn’t have to sprint,” Roglič said.
“It is hard to plan this Vuelta, a lot of things. You don’t know what to really expect. I planned before the start of this that the legs would decide, but it didn’t really come to that point until the last stage.
“You are sprinting for the bonus seconds and this and that, but I am not really a sprinter.
“I would have liked mountains but yesterday was then cancelled. I just had to do it today if I wanted to win. Obviously I had the legs and I enjoyed it a lot.”
Back and forth battle throughout race
Roglič looked good on the first summit finish of La Molina but was outfoxed by Ayuso, who narrowly took the stage win plus the leader’s jersey.
Roglič edged him out one day later and took over at the top by virtue of better stage placings, but the back-and-forth battle continued Friday when Ayuso took a time bonus and nabbed the lead once more.
High winds removed the big climbs from Saturday’s stage, leaving everything to come down to Sunday.
Roglic showed he meant business when he won the first intermediate sprint. With Ayuso third the Slovenian moved into the virtual lead but his rival fought back in the next bonus tussle, reversing those results and retaking the jersey.
That upped the pressure on Roglič to deliver on the tough Montjuic circuit, and he did just that.
“I didn’t have the best legs, but the team helped me from the beginning,” a resigned Ayuso said. “First we lost the first intermediate, then we won the next one so I was still leader. So Red Bull had to play offensively.”
He said he knew Roglič wouldn’t leave it late. The big move came with 21 km to go.
“With three laps to go, at the start of the hard part I touched with another rider and I lost many positions,” Ayuso continued. “Red Bull saw it and they played it intelligently, starting from the bottom. I was quite behind and managed to arrive nearly on his wheel, but at the top he cracked me. He opened the gap and he went.
“He was the strongest rider today and chapeau to him.”
Roglič will now continue his buildup for the Giro d’Italia. He said he will take a break, and then knuckle down again with some training camps.
The Giro is still over four weeks away, but he appears to be right where he needs to be.
